Cuomo Says Senate Democrats Wouldn’t Be Dysfunctional Again

Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he will stay out of the fight for control of the state Senate, but he said if Democrats regain power, they’ll be better behaved.

“The Assembly will pick a leader and the Senate will pick a leader, and I have no intention in getting involved in either situation,” Cuomo told reporters today at a storm briefing.

Cuomo said the Senate has become more of a coalition conference, with Republicans, Democrats and the Independent Democratic Conference.

But Cuomo said if Democrats were to regain the majority, they would not go back to the dysfunction of 2009 and 2010 — when there was a coup, late budgets and scandals.

“No one is going back. I think they learned the hard way, Cuomo said.

“The Democrats were in power. The Democrats then lost power because of the dysfunction. And I think they learned that lesson the hard way.”

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Jon Campbell has been covering government and politics for the Gannett Albany Bureau since May 2011. Previously, he covered health and environmental issues for the Press & Sun-Bulletin in Binghamton, N.Y., with a focus on natural gas development in the Marcellus Shale.

Joseph Spector is Gannett Albany Bureau chief and has covered New York politics and government since 2002. He was the political reporter for the Democrat and Chronicle and has since joined the Albany Bureau, covering state government for all of Gannett New York.

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